Trains at London Victoria, BML & SEML, 20/08/24

Victoria station, also known as London Victoria, is a central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in Victoria, in the City of Westminster, managed by Network Rail.

Named after the nearby Victoria Street, the main line station is a terminus of the Brighton Main Line to Gatwick Airport and Brighton and the Chatham Main Line to Ramsgate and Dover via Chatham. From the main lines, trains can connect to the Catford Loop Line, the Dartford Loop Line, and the Oxted line to East Grinstead and Uckfield.

Southern operates most commuter and regional services to south London, Sussex and parts of east Surrey, while Southeastern operates trains to south-east London and Kent, alongside limited services operated by Thameslink. Gatwick Express trains run direct to Gatwick.

The Underground station is on the Circle and District lines between Sloane Square and St James's Park stations, and on the Victoria line between Pimlico and Green Park stations. The area around the station is an important interchange for other forms of transport: a local bus station is in the forecourt and Victoria Coach Station is nearby.

Victoria was built to serve both the Brighton and Chatham Main Lines, and has always had a "split" feel of being two separate stations. The Brighton station opened in 1860 with the Chatham station following two years later. It replaced a temporary terminus at Pimlico, and construction involved building the Grosvenor Bridge over the River Thames.

It became immediately popular as a London terminus, causing delays and requiring upgrades and rebuilding.

It was well known for luxury Pullman train services and continental boat-train trips, and became a focal point for soldiers during World War I.
Like other London termini, steam trains were phased out of Victoria by the 1960s, to be replaced by suburban electric and diesel multiple-unit services; all services from the station are currently operated using electric multiple units.

Despite the end of international services following the opening of the Channel Tunnel, Victoria still remains an important London terminal station. The connected Underground station, in particular, suffered from overcrowding, until a major upgrade was completed in the late 2010s.

The Gatwick Express service provides easy access between Central London and Gatwick Airport for international travellers.

The station complex is in Victoria in the City of Westminster, immediately south of the London Inner Ring Road. It is located south of Victoria Street, east of Buckingham Palace Road and west of Vauxhall Bridge Road.

Several railways lead into the station line by way of Grosvenor Bridge from the south west, south and south east.

It is in Travelcard Zone 1 and is one of 19 stations managed by Network Rail.

It has been a Grade II listed building since 1970.

Victoria Coach Station is about 300 metres south-west of the railway stations. It is the main London coach terminal and serves all parts of the UK and mainland Europe.

In 2019/20, Victoria was the second-busiest station in the UK, with an estimated 73.6 million passenger entries/exits.

However, as with other stations, patronage dropped dramatically as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The estimated usage figure fell 81% in 2020/21 to 13.8 million, although Victoria retained its rank in second place, behind Stratford.

Duration of the video: 15:17 - 16:07

We’ll be seeing services by Southeastern, Southern, Gatwick Express and Locomotive Services as well.

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I really appreciated my time that was spent at London Victoria especially with what I managed to see nowadays I don’t often tend to film at London terminals quite frequently however I’d thought I’ll give London Victoria a try plus it’s something different for once.

My next station will be Cambridge which is located on the West Anglian Mainline so until then thanks for watching and I’ll see you in the next video.